


Home Bound

by LuvBusters



Category: The Real Ghostbusters
Genre: F/M, Jealousy, Language, Sickness, epidemic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-24
Updated: 2020-03-24
Packaged: 2021-03-01 03:21:35
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,675
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23288449
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LuvBusters/pseuds/LuvBusters
Summary: A severe flu epidemic has swept across the country, leaving many terribly sick. Janine is one of them infected. Egon risks everything to get to her.
Relationships: Egon Spengler/Janine Melnitz
Comments: 2
Kudos: 6





	Home Bound

**Author's Note:**

  * For [headgeekette](https://archiveofourown.org/users/headgeekette/gifts).



> I don’t mean to make fun of our current pandemic crisis. Just trying to add a little fun to help us all get through it.

The state of New York, like many other US states, was on total lockdown. A massive flu epidemic was sweeping across the country. It was a new stronger strand and the usual treatments were not responding. The National Guard had been activated in order to make sure everyone stayed in their homes. All businesses were shut down, including the Ghostbusters. They couldn’t go out on any calls unless it was truly a matter of life or death. 

So, Janine was stuck at her apartment while the guys were stuck at the firehouse. The city looked like a ghost town. 

“Man, this is creepy!” Winston said.

“And considering we bust ghosts for a living, that’s saying something!” Peter replied. 

“Egon and Ray are having a blast in the lab!” 

“Yeah, but that’s not really much different than a regular day!” 

Both men laughed as Peter flipped through the tv channels. 

Just then, Egon and Ray came into the rec room. 

“Playtime over?” Peter asked.

“Just taking a break,” Ray replied. 

The phone rang. Egon rushed over to the phone in the kitchen and answered. “Ghostbusters.”

“Egon?” a stuffy sounding woman asked.

“Janine?” 

“Yeah, I think I’ve got this flu,” she replied, then followed by a sneeze. 

“How did you get it? You’re supposed to stay inside!” Egon spoke sternly. 

“I think I caught it from my neighbor. I went downstairs the other day to turn in my rent payment and she stopped me in the hall to talk.”

“Do you have what you need? Enough orange juice, soups, medications?” He sounded almost panicked.

Janine coughed before answering. “I don’t have any juice or soup; I didn’t stock up on that stuff cause I didn’t think I’d get it!” 

The others had heard Egon’s half of the conversation and had gathered around the phone. 

“We can take Ecto and bring you some stuff!” Ray offered. “They won’t stop us if we have the sirens on!”

“We’ll just say we’re on the way to a call - dire emergency!” Winston agreed. 

“No, I don’t want you guys getting in trouble cause of me,” Janine replied. 

“You’ve gotta do something, Big J! You can’t just sit there and get worse!” Peter urged.

“No. There’s a couple of nice national guard guys guarding the outside of the building!” Janine said, sounding a bit too excited in Egon’s opinion. “They said to let them know if I needed anything. They’d be happy to help!”

“I bet they will!” Peter teased.

Winston and Ray both grinned.

Egon, on the other hand, looked extremely bothered. “I’LL BE RIGHT THERE!” He handed Peter the receiver and ran to the lab. 

“No Egon!” 

“Forget it, Red! He’s on a mission!” Peter laughed.

“What mission?” she asked.

“I think Spengs wants to play doctor!” Peter held the receiver away from his ear as he heard Janine slam her phone down, ending the call.

“What happened?” Ray asked.

Peter smiled smugly. “She’s either pissed over my joke or she’s freshening up for Spengs!”

“Either one is possible,” Winston said, grinning.

The guys met Egon in the lab. He was rushing around the room. 

“What’s the game plan?” Peter asked. 

“I’m taking latex gloves and face masks with me to Janine’s apartment. I also have a few bottles of orange juice in the refrigerator that I’ll take to her. Do we have any extra ibuprofen?” Egon rambled as he was feverishly packing the items into a gym bag.

“Yeah, I’ll get the bottle!” Winston said. 

“I’ll see if we’ve got any canned or frozen foods you can take!” Ray said before running to the kitchen.

Peter walked up to Egon, placing a hand on his shoulder to calm him. “Take it easy. You don’t actually think Janine’s gonna fool around with those guys, do ya?”

“I just need to get to her, Peter. Help her before she gets worse.” 

Peter saw the fierceness in his friend’s eyes and knew nothing would change his mind. He simply smiled and stepped aside. “Go get her, Tiger.”

Egon smiled and continued gathering things and stashing them in his gym bag. Winston returned with a bottle of ibuprofen and an additional thermometer. Ray came running back with two bags of frozen peas, three cans of vegetable soup and a bag of crackers. 

“Did ya leave anything for us, Tex?” Peter teased.

“Yeah! We’ve still got enough!” 

“Egon, you know nobody is supposed to be outside? You could be arrested!” Winston warned.

He gave Winston a determined look as he slipped on his jacket. “I’m willing to take that chance. I’ll walk so you guys can use Ecto if something happens. I can make it there within an hour.”

Winston gave him a friendly slap on the shoulder as Egon made his way downstairs. 

“I’ll call if she gets worse,” Egon said over his shoulder as he opened the front door of the firehouse.

“Be careful! Don’t you get it, too!” Ray shouted. 

Egon gave a thumbs up as he quickly left. He cautiously looked around to make sure no police or national guard officers were around. The coast was clear so he started out on a brisk jog. He had made it by almost six blocks before he ran into his first obstacle: two police vehicles being used as a barricade at an intersection. 

Egon looked around for the officers but didn’t see them. He started out and had almost made it completely past the vehicles when the officers came around the corner. Apparently, they had both stepped away for a cup of coffee from the nearby food truck. 

“Hey! Stop! You shouldn’t be out here!” One officer yelled. 

Egon started running - fast. Thanks to his long legs, he was able to take longer strides, easily outrunning the two officers. Once he was sure they had stopped their pursuit, Egon returned to a quick walking pace. He was able to catch his breath but he didn’t stop. The thoughts of Janine’s health deteriorating kept him going. And so did the thoughts of those national guard recruits drooling over her. “Peter’s right, she would never be attracted to men like that,” he thought as he continued walking. However, more impure thoughts of the men fondling Janine soon flooded his mind, causing him to resume a faster speed. 

He had almost made it halfway when a small group of national guardsmen spotted him trying to cross the street and headed to the Brooklyn bridge. 

“Sir, please stop. We’ll escort you back home,” one of the guardsmen announced sternly. 

Egon slowed his pace but continued walking. 

“SIR, I REPEAT, PLEASE STOP!” 

Suddenly, Egon broke out into a fast sprint, jumping the barricade in front of the bridge entrance like an Olympic runner. His feet hit the pavement and he picked up speed. He quickly glanced back to see that the guardsmen weren’t following him. Once he could see the other end of the bridge, he saw why. 

“Crumbs!” he muttered. “I should’ve realized they would have BOTH ENDS of the bridge barricaded!” He slowed his pace and then had a brilliant idea. 

He reached into the gym bag and pulled out a yellow hard hat. He had kept it after they had answered a busting call a few months ago where they had to go into the sewer system. 

Egon stood tall and confident as he approached the guardsmen on the opposite end of the bridge. He stopped suddenly when the men aimed their guns at him. He held up his hands. “Gentlemen, May I ask exactly what the problem is?!”

The leader of the group gave a hand signal, the others lowering their weapons. “Sorry, we were radioed that someone had jumped the barricade at the other end of the bridge. We were told to apprehend him.”

“It must be some sort of misunderstanding. I’m the only person on this bridge. I was ordered to make some checks to ensure the structural stability,” Egon said in a stern voice. “Now, if you’ll excuse me, I need to return to my post and make my report.”

“Of course, sir. My apologies.” 

The men cleared the way as Egon stepped over the barricade and headed across the street. As soon as he was out of sight, he removed the hard hat and returned it to the gym bag. 

It was another five miles to go. Egon picked up his pace again, his thoughts returning to how Janine was doing by now. His mind wandered to whether she would allow him to stay with her to help take care of her? He shook his head to clear his thoughts. 

“Sir? You need to stand still! We will return you to your home!” A loud voice boomed. 

It pulled Egon back to reality. “Double crumbs!” he muttered. He could’ve kicked himself for not paying attention. Now, he had walked out right in front of two police officers. “Good day gentlemen. I’m on my way to a very important ghostbusting call.”

The officer smirked. “Right, and where’s your gear? And that car of yours?”

“This is a ….. house call.”

“I don’t care. The rule is everybody stays put inside!” 

Just then, a fire truck with sirens blaring came racing down the street. As fast as lightning, Egon ran up to the side of the truck as the police officers moved off the street. He grabbed the door handle on the side of the fire truck and hopped onboard. Once the fire truck had turned the corner, the police officers realized Egon had given them the slip. 

Egon rode the fire truck another three miles when the truck slowed to make a turn. “Thank you for the lift!” He jumped off the side of the truck and headed in the opposite direction from the truck. He was minutes away from Janine’s apartment building now!

He ran the rest of the way there. When he arrived, he stopped across the street. He could see Janine standing just inside the main door. She seemed to be having a conversation with one of the guardsmen. She was holding a tissue over her nose and mouth. Egon’s blood boiled instantly as he sized up his competition. The soldier was about six feet tall with short dark brown hair. He seemed to be of moderate build. 

Egon snapped. He took off running at full speed, forcefully pushing his way past the other two soldiers. 

“HEY! YOU NEED TO BE INSIDE!” One of the men yelled. 

Egon stood toe to toe with Lt. “Good Body” as Janine squealed and backed away from the door. 

“EGON?!” Janine screamed in surprise.

“Sir, I’m afraid I’m going to have to ask you to leave!” The young man said sternly. 

Egon gave the soldier a withering glare. “No, I most certainly will NOT! This young woman is ill and I’m here to take care of her!” With that, he took Janine by the hand and led her up the stairs. 

“Egon….,” she began but was interrupted.

“Janine, I’m here with provisions to help you feel better. Now, we need to get you back to your apartment.” 

Janine didn’t argue. She allowed Egon to help her back to her place and settled onto the couch. “I didn’t see Ecto and the cabs and buses aren’t running. Did you ….did you WALK the whole WAY?!”

“I did,” Egon replied. “I had to evade the authorities several times, but I made it.”

“Egon, you shouldn’t have!”

He sat down on the couch beside her. “Yes, I had to. This Illness has affected many people, and I was worried that your condition would worsen.”

Janine’s eyes teared slightly. “You’ve put yourself at risk. What if I make you sick? I can’t have that!” 

He opened the gym bag and showed her the masks and gloves. He also removed the orange juice and food, then began putting them away. “Have you taken any pain reliever?”

“Yeah, two hours ago.”

He returned to the couch with a glass of orange juice and a decongestant pill. “Take this.” 

She did as told. Egon took the glass back. “By the way, why were you flirting with that guardsmen?” He gave her an icy glare. 

Janine was taken back a bit but returned her own glare. “For your information, I was asking him if I could go out to get essential groceries!”

Egon’s glare melted, leaving him with a sheepish expression. 

“Egon! Did you honestly think I would flirt with those guys?!” 

“Well, you sounded quite enthusiastic over the phone,” he tried to explain. 

Janine rolled her eyes. “I’m SICK EGON! I feel worse than shit right now and was trying to find out if I’d be allowed to go myself or get my mom to bring in some stuff for me!”

Egon quickly felt ashamed. “Janine, I’m sorry but that’s why I’m here! I brought a few things that we had on hand. I just wanted to get to you before your condition worsened!”

Janine’s anger melted away. “I’m sorry. You did risk a lot to get here and I do appreciate it. I just don’t want you to get sick, too.” 

Egon put on a face mask and a pair of latex gloves. “I came prepared. Now, you need to lie down and get some rest.”

He helped Janine up and assisted her to the bedroom. Once she was settled in bed, Egon sat down in the chair a few feet away. 

“You should rest, too,” she said weakly. 

“I’m fine right here,” he assured her. 

Soon, Janine fell asleep, Egon following not long after.

****************   
The week passed and Egon had successfully nursed Janine back to health without contracting the flu himself. The city was still on lockdown, but city officials had lifted some restrictions. The Ghostbusters were now allowed to return to tending to busting calls as long as they were back at the firehouse by 8:00 pm. City transportation services had been activated to assist people to essential appointments, such as people with certain health needs (dialysis, heart patients, cancer treatments, etc). The 8:00 pm curfew applied to everyone citywide. 

Egon had stayed with Janine during the entire time she had been sick. Now that she was better, Ecto-1 stopped by her apartment to pick up Egon on the way to a call with the promise that they’d drop him back off on the way back. He camped out on her couch another week. Janine was then ready to return to work. 

The lockdown was lifted and her and Egon returned to the firehouse. They had to endure Peter’s relentless jokes about what had “really happened” but they assured everyone that Janine had not been in any condition to “entertain” Egon. 

However, during their stay together, Egon had admitted his feelings for Janine. They had agreed on a date night after another week. The restaurants needed time to reopen and get back on their feet. 

Peter stepped into the lab. “So Spengs! What did the two of you really do?” He wiggled his eyebrows as he leaned against the work table. 

Egon looked up at his friend, smiling. “As we have told you, nothing happened. Janine was ill.”

“Um hmmm,” Peter replied as he left the lab. 

Egon just smiled. 

Peter stopped by Janine’s desk, sitting down on the corner.

“Can I help you, Dr. Venkman?” she asked as she looked over her glasses. 

Peter leaned closer. “What really happened while Spengs was at your place?”

“Nothing,” Janine replied innocently. “I was sick.”

Peter leaned even closer. “Then where did that small hickey on his neck come from? I got a glimpse of it the other day after he had changed to his pajamas.”

Janine stood slowly, turning her back to the psychologist as she began filing away some case files. She closed the cabinet and returned to her seat, smiling wickedly. “I was sick, Dr. V - not dead.”

Peter stood and gave her a saucy wink. He said nothing as he sat down at his desk and picked up a magazine, smiling smugly.

**Author's Note:**

> A big shout out to Headgeekette who gave me the idea to run with!


End file.
